Robert Nigel Ashley from England outside the house where writer George Orwell was born in Motihari. Picture by RN Sinha

Motihari, May 5: The quaint house where renowned author George Orwell was born in 1903 and lived in the initial years of his life continues to evoke interest and draw fans of his writings and tourists alike.

British subject Robert Nigel Ashley, who recently came here from Coventry in England to visit the birthplace of Motihari-born millennium writer George Orwell, said: “It’s a wonder of the world.”

Calling this heritage site as an emotional part of history, the foreign tourist exclaimed that how the world community remained indifferent and unconcerned towards an important structure in India and allowed its decay.

“I have decided to take up this important matter related to a very important person of the 20th century and the millennium writer of the world with the British government,” said Robert, who had visited India on a tourist visa last August. He said he, along with David Meneney, a writer and a fan of George Orwell, who belongs to Newcastle (England) and presently lives in Thailand, wants to help the government preserve the structures.

Nigel spoke of Orwell’s simple way of life and how he lived like an ordinary man throughout his life. He added that apart from the UK, all Commonwealth nations should take up the cause of preserving the house of Orwell.

He also expressed his gratitude to the district administration, which despite the lack of attention to preserve this heritage site, did not allow the structures to perish. He was especially thankful to some local journalists who have always kept this important issue alive through their news reports. He also thanked Braj Nandan Rai, who is a retired teacher and lives in Orwell’s house. Rai even repairs the house himself.

Taking about Eric Arthur Blair, who is popularly known by his pen name as George Orwell, Nigel said the writer had preferred to be known by his pen name because he was influenced by two things, first was the name of King George V and second, the Orwell river which flows beside the author’s native house in a village in the Suffolk province of UK.

He added that no one thought that only a fraction of the $20 million public money drained on the recent royal marriage in London could have saved the house.